author(s)
G Srinivasan, M Prabu, A Serma Saravana Pandian and B Jaya Varathan

abstract
According to World Health Organization (WHO), Food hygiene are the conditions and measures necessary to ensure the safety of food from production to consumption. India along with China accounts for 49.00 per cent of total economic burden due to food borne diseases in low and middle income countries. Food borne diseases cost India $28 billion (INR 178100 crore) equivalent to 0.5 per cent of country’s GDP every year. Veterinarians play a significant role in food safety. In this study, an attempt was made to evaluate the knowledge, attitude and practices of students studying veterinary medicine and the effects of age, gender and education level, food safety knowledge, Attitude on Food safety practices followed. The study was designed and conducted during January 2020 using structured questionnaires and the study involved 100 both under graduated, post graduates and PhD students of Madras Veterinary College currently enrolled in veterinary medicine education at TANUVAS. Analysis carried out include descriptive statistics and Multiple linear regression analysis is advocated to find out the relationship between Food Safety Practice and factors like age, gender, schooling, nativity, level of education, knowledge, and attitude. The results indicated that majority of (74 per cent) of the sample respondents knew that cooked and raw meat had to be separately placed in the refrigerator, whereas 11 per cent did not know it and 12 per cent have had stated that they don’t know it. Majority (79 per cent) of sample respondents know that milk and dairy products should be chilled within 2 hours. 62 per cent of the sample respondents concurred that they always check the best before date of food, majority (73 per cent) claimed that they never taste expired food, 34 per cent of the sample respondents intends to clean the refrigerator monthly. Majority of the sample respondents covered their (67 per cent) mouth while coughing or sneezing always which is a recommended practice, whereas 15 per cent covered their mouth only some times and 4 per cent never covered their mouth. The variable, knowledge was having positive relationship with food safety practices and the people with better food safety knowledge said to have better food safety practices.